Stone-picker.



. J. K. ZUG.

STONE PIGKER.

APPLICATION FILED .TAN.1Z, 1914.

Patented May 26, 1914.

3 SHBETE-SHEET 1.

L w 3 f cowmem PLANOGRAPH (JD-,WASHINOTON, D- o.

J. K. ZUG.

STONE PIOKER.

APPLICATION FILED JAN. 12, 1914.

1 ,O98,207 Patented May 26, 1914.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

COLUMBIA PLANOORAPH CO WASHINGTON. n. c.

J. K. ZUG.

STONE PICKER.

APPLIQ ION FILED JAN. 12, 1914.

1,098,207. Patented May 26, 1914.

3 SHEETSSHEET 3.

' WWW COLUMBIA PL NQ RAPH 1:0..WASHINGTON. D. (5.

JAMES K. ZUG, OF FAYETTEVILLE, PENNSYLVANIA.

STONE-PICKER.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented May 26, 1914.

Application filed January 12, 1914. Serial No. 811,717.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, JAMES K. Zoo, a citizen of the United States of America, and resident of Fayetteville, in the county of Franklin and State of Pennsylvania, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Stone-Pickers, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to stone pickers and particularly to novel means for causing a traveling machine to remove stones from the surface of the ground and convey the same to a carrier, suchas a wagon or the l ke, which moves by or with the stone picking and conveying apparatus.

.A further object of the invention 1s to provide means associated witl1 the mach1ne for gathering the stone or for directing them during the travel of the machine until they are picked up by the-conveying mechanism heretofore mentioned.

A still further ob'ect of this invention is to provide means or adjusting the stone gathering or collecting device so that it may travel in certain relation to the surface of the ground or be permitted to depend somewhat beneath the surface of the ground to more effectively dislodge stone which may be slightly embedded in the ground, the said stone gathering or collectin medium being preferably in the nature of teeth suitably supporte in assembled relation.

With the foregoing and other objects in view, the invention consists in the details of construction and in the arrangement and combination of parts to be hereinafter more fully set forth and claimed.

In describing the invention in detail, reference will be had to the accompanying drawings forming part of this specification wherein like characters denote corresponding parts in the several views, and in which- Figure 1 illustrates a longitudinal vertical sectional view of a stone gathering machine embodying the invention; Fig. 2 illustrates a top plan view thereof; Fig. 3 illustrates a view in elevation of the rear end of the machine; Fig. 4 illustrates a detail sectional view of a fragment of a chute associated with the gathering mechanism; and Fig. 5 illustrates a detail sectional view of a fragment of the conveyor.

In these drawin s I have shown a wheeled vehicle or truck w ich may be of any appropriate type, the same being here shown as having a rear truck 6 and a front truck 7, the rear truck having traction wheels, the peripheries or tread surfaces of which are preferably provided with spurs 8 or the like to insure proper traction. The trucks 6 and 7 support a sill or frame 9 on which the mechanism is mounted and near the front of the frame standards 10 are supported.

A conveyer frame 11 extends from the sill 9 near the rear end thereof to a point be end the standards 10, the front end 0 -the said conveyer frame being supported by the said standards. Furthermore, the front end of the frame 11 has bearings 12 in which the shaft 13 is journaled, the said shaft 13 having sprocket wheels 14 mounted thereon which sprocket wheels are engaged by sprocket chains 15. The traction wheels 6 are preferably mounted on rotating axles 16, the said rotating axles being mounted in bearings 17 connected to the sill 9. The rotating axle 16 is further provided with sprocket wheels 18 which are engaged by the sprocket chains 15. The frame 11 is further provided with rails 19 extending from their inner surfaces, the said rails being of any appropriate type adapted to support anti-friction rollers 20, which anti-friction rollers 20 are mounted on studs 21 carried by the slats 23, which slats extend from one sprocket chain 15 to the other and are secured thereto in any appropriate way. The slats 23 are supplied with teeth 24 curved as shown in the drawing, the said teeth forming with the plates 25, one of which is secured to each slat and is supported by the chains 15, pockets or shelves on which the stones ride during the ascent of the chain from the stone gathcrer to the upper end of the conveyor where they are dislodged and delivered to the carrier.

The stone gatherer comprises a head 20 having a series of downwardly extending teeth 27, the said teeth being separated to form a rake-like structure designed to gather or collect stone while the gatherer is being drawn across the ground. The teeth 24 of the conveyer are designed to pass between the teeth 27 of the gatherer so that the stones which have been collected by the gathcrcr are taken up by the conveyer teeth during their travel. The head 26 is mounted on links 28, each link being pivotally connected vertically to the frame 11 so that the head may swing with relation to the frame. Brackets 29 are mounted on the sills 9 and form bearings for a shaft 30, the said shaft having mounted thereon a sheave pulley 31 with which there is associated a ratchet wheel 32. A lever 33 is pivotally mounted on the shaft and a dog 34 is pivoted to it, the said dog having its nose in engagement with the ratchet wheel and in such relation to the ratchet teeth thereof as to communicate motion to the ratchet wheel upon the oscillation of the lever. By moving the lever, therefore, the sheave pulley may be rotated and as a chain 35 is connected to the head 26 and is wound on the sheave pulley, rotation of the said sheave pulley results in elevating or lowering the head according to the direction of rotation of the said sheave pulley.

, front end of the frame 11 and having their lower ends supported by the braces 3?, which braces are attached to the standards 10.: The screen and chute has a floor 38 at its lowerend and just above the edge of the floor I provide a row of bars 39 spaced apart for the purpose of permitting the escape of loose earth which may be jarred from the stones as they fall from the conveyer. In order to prevent undue jar and vibration of the mechanism, 1 provide a stone receiving platform 40 just above the ends of the bars, the said platform being preferably of metal or the like supported in place by springs 41. The springs are secured to a cross bar 42, the ends of which are secured to the side bars 36. It follows from an inspection of the drawing that stones which fall from the elevator strike the yiel dable platform and then said stones slide over the surfaces of the bars and :over thesolid floor of the chute and the receptacle or wagon 43 which is situated in frontof the stone athering machine and in vposition under the chute to receive the said stones. Provision is made for connecting the stone gathering machine to the coupling bar of the wagon and to that end the stone gathering machine has a short tongue 45 secured to the coupling bar 44 by a bolt 46 or by any other appropriate fastening device.

From an inspection of the drawing, it will be observed that the stone gathering machine being caused to travel with the wagon, stones which are gathered or collected by the teeth 27 are taken by the conveyer. teeth and deposited into the chute from whence they find their way intothe bed of the wagon, and that deposits of earth or the like which adhere to the stones and dislodged therefrom when the stones are traveling in the chute are permitted to escape so that the wagon bed is not filled with such earth deposits.

I claim 1. In a stone gathering machine, a truck, a conveyer frame, means for supporting the conveyer frame in an inclined position on the truck, a track carried by the frame, sprocket wheels at the ends of the track, sprocket chains run thereon, slats connecting the sprocket chains, studs carried by the slats, anti-friction rollers on the studs, said anti-friction rollers traveling on the track, teeth carried by the slats, a plate secured to each slat, said plate being supported by the chains, a stone gathering device in conjunction' with which the teeth of the conveyer operate, means for adjusting the stone gathering device, and a chute to which the stones are delivered by the conveyer.

2. In a stone gathering machine, a truck, a conveyer frame, means for supporting the conveyer frame in an inclined position on;

the truck, a track carried'by the frame, sprocket wheels at the ends of the track, sprocket chains run thereon, slats connecting the sprocket chains, studs carried by the slats, anti-friction rollers on the studs, said anti-friction rollers traveling on the track, teeth carried by the slats, a plate secured to each slat, said plate being supported by the chains, a stone gathering device comprising teeth spaced apart in conjunction with which the teeth of the conveyer operate, and means for adjusting the height of the teeth of the stone gatherer.

In testimony whereof, I aiiix my signature in the presence of two witnesses.

JAMES K. ZUG. Witnesses Isaac /VINGERT, JOHN L. EToHBEReEn.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents,

Washington, D. G. 

